« Ordo Ab Chao : la modélisation pour gérer le chaos ? » 

Dispositifs d’enseignement/apprentissage en langues

médiatisés et à distance

Jean-Claude BERTINUMR IDEES-CIRTAI, Le Havre

Jean-Paul NARCY-COMBES,DILTEC, Sorbonne Nouvelle - UPMC

Plan de l’intervention

1. Epistemological stance• A systemic approach to language learning environments• Morin’s Complex Thinking• Emergentist perspectives

2. Destructuring the system’s components• Destructuring language• Destructuring learning paths• Destructuring mediation

3. Organizing chaos through modeling ? • The didactic ergonomics model • Evolving relationships within the model• An emergentist perspective for the model

Complex systems theories

(adapted from Sockett 2010)

Theoreticallevel

Mathematicallevel

Applicationlevel

complexity

Dynamic systems theories Focus on changes

within the system

Connexionism Focus on interactions within

the system

Emergentism :Specific properties of a

complex system

Reductionism :Specific properties of the

system’s components

refuted

An evolving epistemological stance…

Chaos : destructuring language• Syntax

• The structural properties of sentences can be explained without reference to inborn grammatical principles. 

• Mac Whinney : grammar emerges from conversation as a way to facilitate accurate tracking and switching of perspective.

• O'Grady : syntactic phenomena are best understood in terms of the operation of a linear, efficiency-driven processor that seeks to reduce the burden on working memory in the course of sentence formation and interpretation.

• Morphology

• Morphological structure emerges from statistical regularities in the form-meaning relationship between words.

• Morphological structure exists but not in the categorical form commonly assumed and coming from frequency, semantic transparency, phonotactics.

• Lexicon

• The lexicon emerges from the way in which the brain responds to and stores experiences- by creating units whose strength and productivity is determined largely by frequency of occurrence. Some of these units corresponds to words, as in traditional lexicon, but many are phrases and other larger units of organization, including possibly abstract constructions.

• Phonology

• Donegan: Children begin with a set of processes (nasalization, devoicing) that emerge as responses to the physical limitations of the human vocal tract and the auditory apparatus.

• A language's phonemic inventory and allophonic patterns then emerge as specific processes are suppresed in response to experience.

• Discourse and pragmatics can be explained in similar terms => our model

interactionmacro-tasks

restructuring practicemicro-tasks - w ith deep processing- pool o f m icro-tasks

INT E G RA T IO NCO NT E NT /DO M A IN

and LA NG UA G E

T UT O R / LE A RNE Rinteraction

and m ediation

L2selected accord ing to curricu lum

(1)(2)

environm ent - teacher identity, personal characteristics and posture

Learn ing environm en t = course design and developm ent

CRIT ICA L RE F LE CT IO N: F O RM A T IV E A S S E S S M E NT(T eacher provides feedback and advice)

Pre-cou rse getting to know the learnerAd justing the cou rse as a resu lt

(3)

(3)

T UT O R / LE A RNE Rinteraction

and m ediation

(teacher suggests m acro-task)

M onitoring: yesF ollow-up: yesA ids : yes / Helps : yesF eedback: yesS caffo ld ing: by teacher

O bjective: create needsM onitoring: yesF ollow-up: yesA ids: yes / he lps: noF eedback: if p rob lem sS caffo ld ing: by peers

Chaos : destructuring learning paths

• Non-linear• Cannot be pre-structured• Triggering interplay of complementary sets of processes in order to create

connexions.• Complementarity of processes is largely unpredictable in its results, but can

be safely anticipated.

• Three questions remain problematic: (1)métareflection (Cummins: BICS et CALP). (2)Mediation.(3)Individual and cultural differences

. The Learning Cycle model remains one dimensional => lacks temporality

Chaos : destructuring mediation in CALL/distance learning

Pedagogic mediation

L ang uag e

L e arne r

T e ac he r

P e d ag o g icm e d iatio n

s e le c tio n o f in p u t(lang uag e m e d iatio n)

s e le c tio n o ftas ks (m ac ro /m ic ro )

fo llo w-up

L ang uag e

L e arne r

T e ac he r

P e d ag o g icm e d iatio n

s e le c tio n o f in p u t(lang uag e m e d iatio n)

fo llo w-up

s e le c tio n o ftas ks (m ac ro /m ic ro )

L ang uag e

L e arne r

T e ac he r

P e d ag o g icm e d iatio n

s e le c tio n o f in p u t(lang uag e m e d iatio n)

fo llo w-up

D is tanc e

s e le c tio n o ftas ks (m ac ro /m ic ro )

Technological mediation

Distance mediation

The “analyser” concept (Lapassade 1971; Petit 1991)

“… anything that causes truth to emerge of what is hidden;

anything may refer to a group, an individual, a situation, an event, a scandal […]”

(Lapassade, 1971, p. 15)

« an individual’s knowledge is described as a personal construction mediated by teachers or peers. Distance [and technology] will not affect the individual’s construction of knowledge, but may make mediation and social interaction more complex » (Narcy-Combes 2010)

Distance : « nouvelles formes d’échanges pédagogiques non seulement grâce au dispositif technologique utilisé mais également grâce à des configurations socio-pédagogiques inédites. » (Dejean-Thricuir, Guichon & Nicolaev V. (2010, 378).

Modeling : towards some kind of order?

• Why refer to models?• Emergentism considers real world macro-objects• Finding one’s way in uncertainty• Structuring what can be structured in chaos• Construct functions (technology) and roles (human) from

interactions• A heuristic model :

• Guiding the construction of the various components of the system by the various actors

• Identify interfaces (= « places ») for interactions• The model is neither rigid nor normative• The model guides the implementation of performances

Simplified Didactic Ergonomics model

Tasks / learning cycle

context

teacher

learner

technology

Language/culture

- A global vision of the macro-object (simplified here)

- Deconstruction into specialised sub-systems : teaching act, learning act, follow-up and regulation) emergence of new actors (teacher/tutor) and new roles (including learners’ roles).

Emergentisme et modèle d’ergonomie didactique

Temporalité

?

Temporalité

?

?

(Adapted from Miras 2011)

Réorganisation du système

Propriétés émergentes (c

apacité à générer d

es activités

liées à l’apprentissage)

variables dans le te

mps

Deconstructing the model – teacher-centred sub-system

language teacher

M a c ro-ta s k

M ic ro-ta s k s

con

strain

tscre

ativity

con

strain

tscre

ativity

learn ingobjectives

learner

Sub-system 1: teacher-centred

- Process organization of materials and pedagogic mediation

computer

teacher in terface

Competence in:

• Course design

• Task design (including technological constraints and potential)

• Materials design

• Environment design

• Computer literacy / team organizer

•Follow-up

• organization & planning

• provision of monitoring devices

Mo

nito

ring

Deconstructing the model – learner-centred sub-system

teacher

computer

learner

peers

input language interaction

language

Sub-system 2: learner-centred

• Process language learning

• New dimensions / actors due to specificity of technological mediation + distance

monitoringtutor

Asynchronous articulation between SS1 and SS2

• Teacher-centred system organization & planning (virtual, latent)

• Learner-centred system only when learner interacts with materials

Deconstructing the model – regulation sub-system

• SS1 and SS2 : 2 different perspectives• Teacher pedagogy driven + representations of the

computer• Learner individual representations of language

learning and of technology

Potential gaps between didactic intention and practices Need for data on system’s operation monitoring

Objectives of follow-up Individual level: learner evaluation, feedback and support Systemic level: system regulation

Roles - Tutor contributes to raise learner’s awareness of the

emerging steps in the task (Bygate)- Contributes to inform teacher about discontinuities .- Teacher in charge of reorganising system at T+1- Modes of reorganisation are context specific.

computer

learner

monitoringtutor

Com puter-m ediatedlearning s pac e

teacherdesigner

sy

ste

mre

gu

latio

n

Conclusions

• Modeling concerns the learning environment / not the processes

• Functions og the learning environment Generate the emergence of conditions favorable to language acquisition Generate conditions for potential sequencing of language learning related operations

• The didactic dimension of the learning environment is non linear and unpredictable.

• Distance highlights discontinuities through the time gap between the teaching and the learning acts need for more information on learner activity (monitoring) for regulation purposes (task and learning environment levels)

• The technological element cannot accept total unpredictability its function = stabilize the environment + flexilbility to adapt to different contexts.

• The general model ensure designers take into account all the components + interactions within the system

• Important : operating the model implies defining the respective responsibility of learner, teacher and/or tutor, according to specific contexts.

Bibliographie Conference based on : •Bertin, J.-C., Gravé, P. & Narcy-Combes, J.-P. (2010). Second-language distance learning and teaching: theoretical perspectives and didactic ergonomics, IGI Global, USA• •Dejean-Thricuir, C., Guichon, N. & Nicolaev V. (2010). “Compétences interactionnelles des tuteurs dans des échanges vidéographiques synchrones”. Distance et Savoirs, 8/2010, 377-393.•Fischer, R. (2006), “How do we know what students are actually doing? Monitoring students’ behavior in CALL”. Conférence plénière : CALL Conference 2006, université d’Anvers.•Lapassade, G. (1971). L’analyseur et l’analyste. Paris: Gauthier-Villars.•Miras (2011). Mémoire de Master 2 recherche, Sorbonne-Nouvelle.•Morin, E., & Lemoigne, J.-L. (1999). Introduction à la pensée complexe. Paris: L’Harmattan•Narcy-Combes, Jean-Paul (2005). Didactique des langues et TIC: vers une recherche-action responsable. Gap Paris, Ophrys.•Petit, F. (1991). Introduction à la psychosociologie des organisations. Paris: Privat, Pratiques Sociales•Rabardel, P. (1995). Les Hommes et les Technologies – Approche cognitive des instruments contemporains, Armand colin, série Psychologie, Paris. •Sockett, G. (2010), « La complexité, l'émergence et la didactique des langues », Présentation à la journée d'étude « Permanences et évolutions en didactique des langues » à l'Université de Nantes, 25 juin 2010. http://prismelangues.u-strasbg.fr/uploads/media/Complexite__emergence_et_DDL_4GGL_02.pdf

L’approche systémique

p ro ce ss

acto r 1 acto r 2

acto r 3

Interactionism : focus on interactionsDynamic systems : focus on interactions + retroactions

La Pensée Complexe (E. Morin)

F ield A F ield B F ield C

? ?

Holistic perspective